There is considerable likelihood that sustained and/or excessive use of any psychoactive drugs can result in psychological problems. Some of these problems are much worse than others, some will go away easily and others not so easily. These problems can include flashbacks and post traumatic stress disorder, paranoia, depression, mood swings, delirium, auditory hallucinations ("the voices"), visual hallucinations and sometimes full-on psychotic conditions. Generally these are what are referred to as Drug Induced Psychosis a.k.a. Losing the Plot. Psychosis by the way is defined as "severe mental derangement ... resulting in delusions and loss of contact with external reality". This normally ends up in an impaired ability to function in work and social situations. Once triggered, these conditions can be very difficult to treat. If you are lucky the symptoms go away when you stop using the drug, the worst case is that you have to take anti-psychotic prescriptions drugs for the rest of your life.

Most at risk are people with existing personality disorders, pre-psychotic personalities, an unstable ego balance, or a great deal of anxiety. There might also be also be certain psychological condition that is latent, that is you don't know about it, it's sitting there hidden in the intricate web of your neurons and brought out to become a real problem by psychoactive drug use. Other problems are caused when some people who feel psychic distress or are having problems self-medicate themselves with drugs. Generally drug use under these circumstances can only make the situation worse.

A complete treatment of this important topic of drug induced psychosis is beyond the scope here: many books have been written, people spend their lives studying and trying to understand just one aspect of it. But it's important that users are aware of these issues and risks, even if it's on a very macro level, since these are amongst the biggest dangers of dance drug use. The two most prominent kinds of drugs that are responsible for these conditions are hallucinogens like LSD, Mescaline and Psilocybin and stimulants like Kat, Speed and Cocaine. Amphetamine Psychosis is a serious condition which is related specifically to use of any amphetamine. But it's not only these drugs that can cause problems. For instance, there are reports of serious psychological problems even from regular cannabis use. MDMA has also caused problems. Some people say that because magic mushrooms are natural, they are safe. Not true - they are psychoactive and although milder than LSD, can still trigger psychosis or cause problems. Some times these problems only start after an extended period of use (like a few years). The results of the drug use survey we have done over the last few years at raves in South Africa have shown that most recreational users experience psychological problems such as mood swings, depression, emotional instability, personality changes and other negative long terms effects.

Even one dose can cause a permanent mental disorder - perhaps you have heard stories of someone who never came back from an acid trip? Some of those stories are true. If you have tripped out on psychoactive drugs several times before, and think that you are no more unbalanced than the rest of the human race, perhaps you're safer. Many people see tripping as an adventure, but one must still be very careful. Every time you trip, you are causing stress on the fragile fabric of your reality, and perhaps one day it might not bounce back. Some people have more resilience and a stronger mental framework than others, but no one can claim that they are completely invulnerable.

Psychologists describe this as the 'kindling' effect. Imagine your reality to be a dense forest. Every time you take a psychoactive drug-induced trip out of reality, you are tramping a path through this structure of your psyche. When you come down, those filaments rebound and reconnect. How often you take that walk will mean the more times your reality is tramped on, and the less time it has to recover. And some people have a much weaker structure, that is not so resilient. They have smaller and more fragile kindling, which is more easily and perhaps permanently damaged, whilst others have more hardy kindling that's stronger. But tramp on that kindling enough and hard enough, it's going to get damaged. This also means that over a period of time, the changes might be subtle and you might not even notice them happening, but others might so its really worthwhile listening to others who can give you an objective opinion or assessment.

Strong stimulants can put you at risk of Amphetamine Psychosis. The more you use them, the more the risks. Regular meth (speed) or Kat use can make you colder, more aggressive and paranoid. It may progress to more extreme symptoms like permanent visual and auditory hallucinations, full-blown paranoia, in some ways similar to schizophrenia. Some will say that you have completely lost the plot and even try and tell you that but because you are so severely delusional, you will think that nothing's wrong.

It's fair to say that excessive use of any drug can make you feel that you're losing the plot and can aggravate existing worries. If you are spending all your time and energy dealing with the drug's issues, you don't get to deal with your own issues and personal development at all, especially if you are young. It should be up to you to decide when you would be happier taking a break from the drugs, but don't leave it to late. If you think you have a problem, or know someone that does, it's best to get professional help from a psychologist as soon as possible. They know about all these things. Most of these conditions can be treated successfully. If you don't know where to find a psychologist to visit, see your family or any other medical doctor for a referral.

Many thanks to Dr Charles Perkil for assistance in compiling this.

Updated 25 March, 2003